As you cover plants and water pipes in preparation for freezing
temperatures, remember to protect outdoor animals against the
cold, too.
"No matter what, you've got to provide your outdoor animals
with
shelter from the wind," said Wes Smith, a University of Georgia
Cooperative Extension agent in Upson County.
Personally, Smith doesn't favor bringing small animals indoors
when the temperatures drop outside.
"Growing up on a farm in Huntsville, Ala., we made sure the
outdoor dogs were warm inside their dog hut," he said. "Now, I
won't let my wife bring the cat inside, so she puts a hot water
bottle under its blanket, and we provide an area to sleep away
from the wind."

More harm than good

Smith says bringing your outdoor animals inside your home can
actually do more harm than good.
"It's a lot like when we get sick when the temperature is 70
one
day and 30 the next," he said. "The drastic change in
temperature can make them sick, too -- especially when they go
from 30 degrees outside to 70 or even 80 degrees inside your
house."
Overall, Smith says to use common sense when protecting your
outdoor animals from freezing temperatures.
"If it drops to zero outside, you are going to have to provide
a
way for them to stay warm," he said.
For farmers, he said, "If you have cattle, it's best that your
pasture has a wooded area where they can go to seek
shelter."
Surprisingly, he said, when snow falls on cattle's backs, it
can
help keep them warm. "When a snow pack forms on their backs, it
creates a form of insulation," he said.
A shelter would be ideal for cattle and other large animals,
but
it's not feasible for most cattlemen.
"When you've gotten 100-plus mama cows, you realistically don't
have a barn large enough to hold them all," he said. "I've even
locked some of my show cows out of the shelter during snow
because it helps them grow a thicker coat. And the animals know
how to compensate for the cold."

Feed cattle more, not less

Cattle, he said, eat more feed during cold weather to create
internal energy. For this reason, he tells farmers to feed
cattle 50 percent more than normal. "Even if they don't eat
it,"
he tells them, "make sure it's accessible."
Cattle and other livestock have to have water, too. "You
wouldn't want to go all day without drinking, and you shouldn't
make them do it," he said.
Of course, they can't drink ice.
"I have a 50-gallon water trough, and I've always been able to
bust up the ice with an axe in the morning," Smith said. "Most
of the time it may be frozen or have a layer of ice in the
morning, but it has melted by the afternoon."
You can break through the ice layer, too, by pouring hot water
over the top.
"A smaller trough will freeze quicker than a larger trough," he
said. "If you don't like the idea of using an axe, there are
water heaters available from area feed-and-seed stores."

(Sharon Omahen is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.)